FRESNO, CA -- Two questions remain for the Fresno Pacific tennis teams as they prepare for the 2010 NAIA Tennis National Championships that begin next week in Mobile, Ala.
-- Can the Sunbirds men repeat the national championship they won last season? FPU (18-1) is seeded No. 1 in the national tournament.
-- Will this be the year the FPU women emerge as champions after four straight runner-up finishes? The Sunbirds (24-1) are seeded No. 2 behind six-time defending national champion Auburn-Montgomery -- who has beaten FPU in the final the past four seasons.
Sunbirds head coach
Neil Castro believes his teams have the talent to win the NAIA titles.
"Our men are going in as defending national champions and have been ranked number 1 all year, so everyone will be shooting for us," Castro said. "We will have to be ready, because this is the deepest field I have seen in my five years at Fresno Pacific.
"We have three new guys in the lineup this year, so they will have to adjust to the pressures of playing in the National Tournament. But this year's team has the potential to repeat if we can get hot and stay patient throughout the five-day event."
The women, who have been No. 2 in the rankings all season, "have been very committed this spring to trying to get over the hump and win that first national title," Castro said.
"It will be tough. There are some very solid teams, but this year's team has shown some glimpses of being the best women's team that we have had. When healthy, we can be very good."
The men's singles lineup is led by a pair of undefeated Frenchmen.
Martin Vaisse is 19-0 this spring and
Maxime Adam is 16-0. The team of
Xavier Smith and
Alex Gonzalez is 16-0 in doubles.
The Sunbirds women are led by freshmen
Sara Celma (22-1),
Cristina Valladares (21-1) and
Erika Januskova (19-2).
The Fresno Pacific men will begin NAIA action on May 19 against the winner of Tennessee Wesleyan vs. Xavier (La.). The women also will start on May 19, facing either Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) or tournament host school Mobile.
All matches are at the Mobile Tennis Center.
The Golden State Athletic Conference is well represented at the NAIA tournament by men's teams from Vanguard, Concordia, Point Loma Nazarene and Azusa Pacific and women's teams from Westmont, Concordia, Azusa Pacific, Vanguard and Point Loma.